Towing a floating dock

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Ron Burgundy
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Towing a floating dock

#1 Post by Ron Burgundy » Sat May 11, 2013 5:26 am

I'm going to be towing a 8' x 12' floating dock 3.5 miles from a friends house to mine.

Is it best to pull it behind the boat, or on the side of the boat?

I'm thinking side by side is better but i've never done it so I'm asking for input. Thanks.
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Bamby
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Re: Towing a floating dock

#2 Post by Bamby » Sat May 11, 2013 5:54 am

We move and everyone else on the river move them all the time by tying them off on the side just as if you were actually docked to them. Here's a picture taken of us moving our dock a couple of years ago.
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It's actually easy, just pack your cooler with some cold ones :drink and enjoy the ride.
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Ron Burgundy
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Re: Towing a floating dock

#3 Post by Ron Burgundy » Sat May 11, 2013 6:11 am

Awesome, thanks for the confirmation. Probably shooting for next week. Ill have to stay tuned to the weather since some of the trip is unsheltered water.
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oldmn19
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Re: Towing a floating dock

#4 Post by oldmn19 » Sun May 12, 2013 5:38 am

I have a friend who builds and installs docks on Kerr lake,NC. He always tows them tied to the side of his work pontoon like above! That way he has complete control of it. :2cents
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bassn386
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Re: Towing a floating dock

#5 Post by bassn386 » Sun May 12, 2013 7:48 am

Here at Lake of the Ozarks we're always seeing docks being relocated. Most of the one's I've seen have a boat in one of the slips, but just yesterday I saw one going up the lake in a pretty healthy wind and it had three boats attached; one on either side and one in a slip. This was a three well dock, so there was a lot to move.
Around here, dock moves are rated in 12 packs, as in how many 12 packs of beer will it take to get from start to finish.
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Thin Ice
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Re: Towing a floating dock

#6 Post by Thin Ice » Mon May 13, 2013 5:59 am

I tow my docks on the side as well. The tighter to the boat/fenders the better.
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Ron Burgundy
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Re: Towing a floating dock

#7 Post by Ron Burgundy » Wed May 15, 2013 12:04 am

We towed it home today without any issues. We're planning to rebuild it and make it 4' longer. I'll post some pics in another thread once we start.
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Ron Burgundy
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Re: Towing a floating dock

#8 Post by Ron Burgundy » Wed May 15, 2013 5:41 am

This is it back home. Time to replace some boards.
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-Ron Burgundy, "Stay Classy San Diego"

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curtiscapk
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Re: Towing a floating dock

#9 Post by curtiscapk » Wed May 15, 2013 6:13 am

Sweet! That had to be pretty cool to do.... :alright
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STEVEBRENDA
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Re: Towing a floating dock

#10 Post by STEVEBRENDA » Wed May 15, 2013 10:02 am

While you are working on it, price on encapsolated foam.
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Ron Burgundy
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Re: Towing a floating dock

#11 Post by Ron Burgundy » Fri May 17, 2013 3:28 am

We have a extra 12' piece of foam and a couple black plastic floats we're using to make it 16' long. Hopefully some work will get done this weekend.
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